British banking officials Monday sought to have the scandal-plagued Bank of Credit & Commerce International liquidated to repay thousands of depositors victimized by its shutdown. Lawyers for the Bank of England said BCCI, which was closed this month amid allegations of pervasive fraud, is technically insolvent and should be shut permanently in the public interest.

A federal bankruptcy judge decided Thursday to liquidate assets of the embattled The Bible Speaks fundamentalist church because its leaders had left town. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James Queenen Jr. agreed to a court-appointed trustee's motion to liquidate The Bible Speaks under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. "I find that there is considerable loss to the estate," Queenen ruled after hearing testimony and attorneys' statements.

Beacon Hill Asset Management, a $1.7-billion hedge-fund group specializing in mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, said it is liquidating two funds after losing $400 million since the end of August, according to some investors in the funds. The money management firm said the asset value of its funds fell 54% in September.

San Diego-based Burnham Pacific Properties Inc., one of the largest strip-mall owners on the West Coast, said that its board voted to liquidate the company after deciding that bids by potential acquirers weren't high enough. The plan will be considered by shareholders at Burnham's annual meeting Oct. 18. The board plans to hire a third party to manage the liquidation. The real estate investment trust hired Goldman, Sachs & Co. last year to review options for the company.

A federal judge in Phoenix approved a plan on Friday to liquidate bankrupt American Continental Corp. and to pay creditors $21 million from its former subsidiary, Irvine-based Lincoln Savings & Loan. About $14.6 million of that payment is earmarked for American Continental's largest creditor group, those who purchased American Continental bonds primarily at Lincoln branches in Southern California.

The Beverly Hills and Los Angeles offices of the country's fourth-largest law firm, New York-based Finley, Kumble, Wagner, Underberg, Manley, Myerson & Casey, began liquidating at the close of business Tuesday, a West Coast spokesman for the firm confirmed. The impending demise of the 20-year-old firm became known publicly about six weeks ago. It has been struggling under a debt load estimated at $60 million to $85 million.

FGS Insurance Agency, a low-cost auto insurer that has been accused of fraud, will be liquidated by a bankruptcy trustee, Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi said Thursday. "This is the end of the road for FGS--a road strewn with the wreckage of chiseled policyholders and bilked creditors," Garamendi said in a statement. "But we will move quickly to clean up this rubble."

Ailing Twinkies maker Hostess Brands Inc. is going toe-to-toe with its workers' unions in a courtroom clash that the company said may lead to its liquidation. Hostess is trying to persuade a federal bankruptcy judge in New York to allow it to reject existing collective bargaining agreements with the Teamsters and bakers' unions. The maker of Ho Hos, Ding Dongs and Wonder Bread filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January, three years after emerging from its last bankruptcy.

Amaranth Advisors, the hedge fund manager that lost billions of dollars in energy trades, will suspend investor redemptions and liquidate its remaining positions, the company said in a letter to clients. Amaranth will continue to pursue strategic alliances, the letter said, after its net asset value declined by 65% to 70% during September. Its funds are down 55% to 60% year to date, it estimated.